The Ungaro brand has been through six designers in as many years, and on the heels of the latest departure -- Giles Deacon -- a new report in WWD indicates that the brand's relatively new CEO may be leaving.
Jeffry Aronsson, who has previously held top posts at Donna Karan, Marc Jacobs, and Oscar de la Renta, was brought on by Ungaro in June to help turn the brand around in the wake of a rocky few years which saw a rapid turn-over in terms of designers and the infamous Spring 2012 collection created by Estrella Archs and "artistic advisor" Lindsay Lohan. According to WWD's report, however, it seems the CEO may be on his way out the door:
The company said, “Mr. Aronsson is still the acting ceo of Ungaro.” But he has been in New York for several weeks and it is understood that he has returned for good to continue his work at Aronsson Group, his investment and consulting firm.
If the report proves true, it would be the latest in a series of misfortunes for the brand founded by Emanuel Ungaro, whose house has endured no small amount of change since the designer showed his last collection in 2001. Asim Abdullah bought Ungaro from Salvatore Ferragamo in 2005, and since then, the designer roster has included names like Peter Dundas, Giambattista Valli, Vincent Darré, and Esteban Cortazar. Since Deacon left the company in September, no successor has been named. What's more, WWD reports that the company's profits have plummeted from about $18.3 million in 2007 to about $6.2 million in 2010.
